Message distributing system for simplex printer concentration units



Oct. 4, 1932. w B, BLANTON 1,880,723

MESSAGE DISTRIBUTING SYSTEM FOR SIMPLEX PRINTER CONCENTRATION-UNITS Filed July 20, 1931 NNNNN NNN N .QUINES QSMNQ Patented` Oct. 4, 1932 i Urn-'rien STATES PATENT vorifice-g WILLIAM is. BLANTON, OE WESTEIELD,` NEW JERSEY AssIeNOE ro THE: WESTERN Y UNION TELEGEAPH COMPANY, OE NEW YORK, N. Y., A ConroaerrON OE NEW YOEK- VMEssAer DISTEIEUTNG SYSTEM `Eon starrt-EX PRINTEN CONCENTRATION UNITS Application -iledJ'uIyf`20, 1931. `Serial No. 552,025.

This invention vrelates to the handling of tratlic at a concentration or central station Where a large number of subscribers lines are terminated before a-small'number of operators and is an improvement upon the'arrangement disclosed in Patent 1,804,327 dated May 5, 1931. Satisfactory service requires that each message shall be expedited to its destination. VTo insure the maintenance of ya lsatisfactory speed of service, the telegraph companies generally specify a time limit within which each message must be retransmitted after. it is received at a central oilice. In a telegraph system, full rate traiiic must be given precedence over reduced rate traiiic, such as day letters and night letters. In order to meet these requirements-at a concentration center,-messages for a branch oiiice, the line of which. is idle, are taken to anidle operator for immediate transmission, while messages for an office, the line of which is busy, are taken to the operator then working that circuit. The operator can then determine in what order the messages shall be transmitted to the branch oiice by noting the' class ot each message.

The obj ect of this invention is to facilitate the distribution of messages at aV centralv station or concentration unit,fwhich are destined for transmission on lines that are busy or in operation, by providing an indication which designates the particular group of operators in which the desired operator is located.

My invention will be understoodV from the following description in connectionwith lthe accompanying drawing in which, for thesake of convenience, the circuit'arrangement is illustrated for only one branch oice and `only one simplex printer is shown at the central oiiice.

The operators cord circuit and its associated equipment in the central office and also that at the branch oce are identical with the corresponding parts in said Patent 1,804,327. The equipment at eachbranch station comprises a simplex printerSP, a key switch K and a signal relay Gr. The branch oiiice is connectedby line L to the central oice. `W'ith the key Kin the position illustrated, the line L isgroundedthrough the signal relay Gr;

while in the depressed position of the key, the

relay G is disconnected and the line is grounded through the simplex printer SP and the energized circuit of the printer operating motor M is completed.,

At the central oiiice, the line L is connected through the line winding 5 of relay C to the multiple turret plugs 1, 2,3, etc. rigidly located in front of the respective operators.V A circuit is normally closed over each line from the central oiiice to the branch oiiices fromthe signal battery or generator SB through the winding of line relay A, over conductor 31, spring Contact arm 13 and upper contact of relay B, conductor 30,- line L, contacts of lr'ey switch K and winding of relay G to ground. l/Vhen the Operator at the branch otlice sends a vcall by tiret shifting the key K to connect the printer and to start the printer motor and then depressing any key on the printer, thereby momentarily will be deenergized and will remain in that condition because of a short circuit which is completed around its winding through the conductor 32 and its left'hand back contact and armature, conductor 33, back Contact and right hand outer armature of relay B and conductors? and 81. The right hand armature ofline relay A closes a circuit through the answer lamp 11. 7While only oney answer lamp 11 is shown, it shouldv beunderstood that there are a snticient number of answer lamps 11 (connected in parallel) associated with this line so that at least one answer lamp 11 is visibleY to'each concentrator operator. The lighting of these lamps indicates-to any i-dle operator that thisV call may be answered vby attaching her printer cord circuit to the corresponding line plug at herfposition.

The operators' cord circuit comprises the circuit arrangement interconnecting the jack J with relays D, E and F and with the simpleX printer S132.l rllhe tip contact in the jack J` is connected to the right-hand tongue of relay E, andthe back Contact cooperating with thistongue is connectedthrough winding 14' of relay D to the plate element'of a opening the line, the relay A tra contacts on jack J is connected to ground,

and the other cooperating extra contact is connected to the tongue of relay D. Winding 15 of relay D and the windings of relays E and'F are connected in series in a circuit extending from the contact of relay D to ground, including a source of current 16. The left-hand tongue of relaypE is connected to the tongue of relay D, and the back contact cooperating with said tongue of relay E is Connected through a busy lamp 17, and a source of current 18, to ground. The contact of relay F is included inthe motor operating circuit of simplex printer SP2. The operating circuit Jfor this printer extends from the front Contact of the right-hand tongue-oi relay E through the printer to the source of operating current OB.

To facilitate the distribution of messages destined for transmission on lines which are busy, the operating tables of a concentrator unit are divided' into distribution groups. The number of tables included in a distribution group is not denite but depends, of course, upon the' particular conditions, floor space and total number of tables in each particular concentration unit, it being desirable, however, that allthe tables in Vany one distribution group shall face upon the same aisle.

All outgoing messages, including those received in the central oiiice over printer circuits, multiplex, telephone, pneumatic tube, etc., whichare destined for retransmission over the circuits terminating in a. particular concentrator, are forwarded inl a suitable manner such as mechanical conveyor system,

yto the message distributing center for the concentrator at which there is located a message routing rack having a compartment for each branch oflice line. One or more routing clerks stationed at the rear of the'rack remove the messages from the conveyor drop and sort them into the proper compartments according to the destination of the messages.

On the front of the message routing rack a vertical row of lamps, which includes one lamp for each distribution group in the concentrator, isprovided underneath each compartment and its associated designation card.

For' purposes of illustration I have shown the operating tablesdivided into five, groups and consequently each compartment of the message routing rack is provided with iive lamps under each compartment, one for each of theiive distribution groups.

When the messages for a particular branch loiiice are placed in the compartment of the message routing rack assigned to this branch office, a delivery girl, by noting which lamp is lighted, is able to take thesepmessages to the table group in which the operator islo-A cated who is working this line, if the line to this branch oiiice is busy at this instant.v Then by noting to which line eachof they operators in this group have their plug'J attached, the

delivery girl can immediately ind the operator who is workingv the branch ol'iice for which these messages are intended. Thus the group position finder very clearly facilitates the distribution of outgoing business over a concentrator by vd ecreasing tol a small number the' operators who must be Vlooked over by the delivery girl when she is seeking an 'operator working on a particular line.

My group vposition inding arrangement embodies a. series of relays corresponding to the number of groupsoi:l operating tables interposed in multiple between eachbranch line and the multipled turret plugs corresponding to that line, each of said relays being provided withra holding coil in circuit with an indicating lam y The operation o1 the group position finder will be understood from the it'ollowingex-` ample n v y 4Assume that a call has been received from the branch oilice illustrated-as indicated by the lighting of the answer lamp 11. Assume further that one of the central oce operators stationed at an operating position in table group No. 3 answers .this call. When she attaches her jack J to one of the turret plugs in table group No. 3 (GT3) the line current will pass through coilv 5 of relay C andthrough the linecoil 1 of group nder relay R3 and through the turret plug to the operators cord circuit, thereby connecting her simplex printer SP2 to v.the branch lline in the manner described. Relays B, C, D, Ev and F operate in the manner described in said Patent 1,804,327.

The operationof group relay R3 closes a holding circuit from generator 85 through the outer left-hand armature'and contact of relay B, conductor 3,6, armature contact'and Aholding winding 71. of relay R3 and group indicator lamp L3 to ground. Thiscircuit will be maintained as Along as the line is held. At the end of the exchange of business, vwhen the operator removes her j ack J, the relay B is deenergized, thus opening the holding circuit 36 which deenergizes group relay R3 and extinguishes the lamp Lis..

I have illustrated my group positionl finder arrangement as appliedto the particular concentration unit circuit shown in Patent 1,804,- 327 but it will be evident that it may be readily adapted to other types of concentrator circuits. It will alsobe evident that various changes and modilicationsmay bemade without departing from my invention.

IclaimfV V 1. In an intercommunication system embodying a central office andy a Vplurality of branch voiiices, aline from each branch office terminating in multipled jacks or plugs at a number of turrets or operators positions, said turrets being arranged in groups, means operated by the line current for indicating in which group Vthe answering operator isV located, and means for maintaining, the operais held.

2. vIn an intercommunication system embodying a central oce and a plurality of branch oiiices, a line from each branch olice terminating in multipled acks or plugs at a number of turrets or operators positions, said turrets being arranged in groups, a plurality of relays corresponding to the number of tion of said indicating means While the line said groups interposed between the line and the multipled jacksor plugs in the respective groups.

3. In an intercommunication system embodying a central oiiice and a plurality of branch ofices, a line from each branch oliice terminating in multipled jacks or plugs at a number of turrets or operators positions,said

' turrets being arranged in groups, a plurality of relays corresponding to the number of said groups, each relay being provided with an actuating Winding and a holding Winding, said actuating windings being interposed between the line and the multipled jacls or plugs in the respective gr0ups,and a holding circuit including an indicating lamp being connected to the armature and holding Winding of each relay.

l. In an intercommunication system embodying a central oiiice and a plurality of branch offices, a line from each branch oice terminating in multipled jacks or plugs at a number of turret or operators positions, said turrets being arranged in groups, a routing rack having compartments corresponding to each branch oiice, adapted to receive messages destined to said respective ofces, a series of indicating signals corresponding in number to said groups associated with each compartment, and means actuated by the seizure of a line for operating the signal correspending to the group in which the seizing operator is located.

In testimony whereof, I atliX my signature.

WILLIAM B. BLAN'ION. 

